No More Owls
by LearnAndLive
Summary: After butting heads with her insufferable family, Ginny turns to someone who she can count on; who makes her pulse speed up and makes her feel more like herself. She writes him a letter, reflects a little about her current relationship, and realizes her family's not so bad after all. **FLUFF**


** "The only people you need in your life are the ones who need you in theirs even when you have nothing else to offer them but yourself." -Anonymous**

"Ginny! Wake up!" I groaned as I heard my bedroom door crash into the wall. Throwing my pillow over my head, I felt Fred and George's weight on either side on my bed as they began to jump at opposite times, causing me to be flung into the air and onto the hardwood floor.

"Oof!" I cried as my forehead collided with the ground. I heard my brothers laugh at me as I stood grouchily. "You idiots!" I rubbed my eyes to see both of them laying on my red comforter, twirling their wands in the fingers. "Get off my bed and get out of my room!" I crossed my arms and tried to blink the grogginess out.

"No can do, dear sister." Fred smirked at my annoyance, Acciong random objects just to bug me with the fact that I was an underage wizard and he was not.

I stormed over to the door in all my pajamaed glory and screamed "MUM!" Only to hear the twins snicker.

"Mum is precisely the one who told us to rouse the princess from her sleep." George nodded toward the alarm clock while pecking at the Rubix cube Hermione sent me. "It's nearly eleven o'clock, Gin. What were you doing last night to make you so tired?" He then levitated a stack of papers on the desk and was about to Accio them, but I quickly ran and slammed them into a drawer.

"Uhm…" I stammered as they raised their eyebrows. Why did they have to do everything in sync? It made me nervous. "…reading." I spat out.

Fred grinned mischievously at George before standing up and crossing the room to me, George in tow. "Really?" He drawled, beginning to circle me like a hawk. "And just what, exactly, were you reading?"

I felt my face flush as I scanned the room for quick inspiration. They landed on the abandoned muggle toy. "Hermione sent me a book she thought I'd like." George tried to reach for the handle on the drawer, but I smacked it away.

"I see, but what was the title?"

"It was…a muggle book. You wouldn't know it."

"Try me."

"Well…um…_HEY!_" In the blink of an eye, Fred threw his arms around my stomach, pinning mine to my sides while George ripped open the drawer, grabbed the papers and Apparated out. Fred quickly followed after Confounding me. As soon as I cleared my head and remembered what they had in their possession, I ran as fast as I possibly could to the living room, believing that to be their headquarters.

"MUM! FRED AND GEORGE CONFOUNDED ME!" I screamed as I clobbered down the stairs. As soon as I reached the ground floor, I nearly threw myself at the first redhead I saw, which (with my luck) was not even one of the twins.

"_Oi!_ Ginny! Bloody hell!" Ron shoved me off of him, picking up the Quidditch magazine he had dropped in the confusion.

I completely ignored him as I jumped back up, scoured the kitchen to see Mum walk in from the washroom. "MUM!" I ran to her and began to rat the twins out like I was ten years old again. "…and they stole…personal things!"

She huffed at me before simply walking up the stairs toward their bedroom. Once there, she barged in to see the twins hovering over a desk, my papers scattered over it. "Gimme those!" I shrieked, wiping them off the top just to keep them from their eyes, even though they probably read half of them already. My face burned at the thought.

"How _dare_ you use magic against your own baby sister! Your _only _sister!" Mum grabbed both of their wands from their bedside table, shoving them in her apron pocket. "_And_ you stole something she wants to keep private! You're not getting your wands back until you apologize _and_ hug your sister!" I groaned and rolled my eyes. That's _always_ the punishment. Hugging was Mum's secret weapon and solution to everything.

"Oh, but Mother dearest," George smirked in my direction and I hurriedly looked out the window and scratched my neck. "We were simply protecting our baby sister from her 'boyfriend', who she happened to exchange love notes with until 3 a.m. last night."

Oh my God. _No_. I am going to _**kill**_ you-

"Ginny!" Mum glared at me. "Give me those letters. You're grounded. You know very well you are not allowed to be up past midnight, much less 3! And what's with these 'love' notes? You know the rules about that sort of thing, and I will not have my baby writing those kind of inappropriate notes! Now, give me the letters. I'll decide your punishment when I'm done reading them."

Oh. My. _God!_

I had to get out of here. My mouth was hanging open, but I snapped it shut quickly before tearing to the door, only to see Ron enter. We collided and I fell flat on my back, but Ron, the nearly six foot _prat_, merely stumbled. Why do I have to be so small?

The twins hauled me up, but clamped my arms so I couldn't make a break for it. How is it when they do something wrong and I bust them, they worm out of it and _I'm _the one who gets in trouble?

"Ginevra Molly Weasley! How _dare_ you try to run away from me!" Mum howled. She Accioed the papers before glaring at me again. "Go _straight_ to your room, young lady! Fred, George, do _simple_ and_ not-permanent_ locking charms on her door. Ginevra, say thank you to your brothers for being so protective and caring about you and give them both a hug." I gave her an exasperated look and she ordered "Now!"

Sighing while staring angrily at both of them, I muttered, with my teeth clenched, "Thank. You." and grabbed each one in a hug while pinching their arms. I stomped past Mum, who handed the twins their wands back, climbed a floor to my room, hearing their footsteps behind me.

"Geez, Gin. We never got it _that_ bad when we were your age. I guess that's what you get when you're the baby of the family _and_ the only blood-related girl in a thousand generations."

On the platform where my door was, I glared at both while they made the trek the rest of the way up. "Shut it. You morons got me in trouble when you've done _way_ worse things than writing letters at night!" I stamped my foot indignantly and stormed into my room, flopping on the bed.

"True, very true. Oh, and by the way, Ginny, if you ever talk like that to another boy ever again, one of us will personally beat the daylights out of him while the other ties you to a chair." They winked simultaneously and then shut the door. I heard a few _clicks_, indicating the locking charms.

I groaned and slumped onto the bed. My wand was in its case on the nightstand, and I barely contained the urge to grab it, unlock the door and hex everyone. Besides the fact of getting in trouble with the Ministry, I couldn't do that. No matter how annoying they could be, they were still my family.

I sighed before standing and stretching, and began to pace my room. I do _not_ want Mum to read those letters…she's probably going to Avada Kedavra me for it. Reaching my desk, I picked up my new black quill and rolled it between my fingers, staring longingly at the blank sheets of paper. I _would_ write to someone…maybe Hermione or Neville, if I had a blasted owl.

I picked up random trinkets and stared at a few pictures for another couple of minutes before, out of boredom, sitting at the desk and beginning a letter.

"Dear"

Dear…who? Hermione? Neville? Dean? Seamus? Parvarti? Lavender? No, there was someone in my subconscious; a name scratching on my tongue, but I just couldn't think of it. Who-

His face materialized in my mind. _Oh_. Right. Smiling to myself while blushing at the thought of doing this, I jotted down:

Dear Harry,

I hope I'm not troubling you with your anti-magic aunt and uncle by sending this, but I really just wanted to see how you are. We're all doing well here, and I do hope you can visit before term starts. We can start practicing for Quidditch; Lord knows we need it. By the way, have you noticed Ron's growing infatuation with Hermione? Both are so ignorant when it comes to that sort of thing though, they'll be lucky if they ever actually get together. Please write back as soon as you can!

"From,"

No…too formal.

"From, Sincerely,"

Oh God no. I write that to my own parents for goodness sake.

"From, Sincerely, Love,

Ginny Weasley"

Love, Ginny Weasley. To Harry Potter, Love Ginny Weasley. To Mr. Potter, Love Ms. Weasley. To Mr. Potter, Love Mrs. Weasley-Potter. To So-And-So, From Mr. and Mrs. Harry Potter.

I giggled like a Hufflepuff first year and sealed the letter, addressing it to Harry Potter. I stood and opened the window, trying to see if Erol was still alive or if Pig was out, but I couldn't detect any wings or hear Pig, who seemed to be on vibrate constantly. I began to despair, so I muttered "Desperate times call for desperate measures." and put the envelope between my teeth, lowering myself out the window and grabbing onto the nearest branch of the backyard tree. I'd snuck out plenty of times before, so I was able to swiftly drop onto the ground and sprint to the pond, which was surrounded by bushes so no one could see me.

I dropped onto the stone bench and caught my breath before laying down completely, letting my legs dangle off the edge. I kicked my shoes off and skimmed my toes and the soles of my feet in the cold water, listening to the low croak of the frogs and staring at the letter. I was using it to shade my eyes from the sun, the light letting me see the outlines of the black ink. One of the words stood out most to me, upside down and printed curly and confusing: Love.

"Love." I scoffed. That's how I ended all those letters I wrote to Dean. Reflecting on my tired state, I recalled how I simply jotted it down because I was his girlfriend and that's what's supposed to happen. The whole relationship was just something to turn to when I was bored. But when I wrote to Harry, I'd truly put thought into the word. Heck, it made me daydream about marrying Harry. This wasn't supposed to happen. I was going out with Dean. I liked Dean! He's nice and funny when we're not rowing, and sure he can be pig-headed sometimes but…but what? Why am I dating him? He's nice and funny? Please! _Ron_ is nice and funny. So is Neville, and Seamus, and…Harry.

Harry's more though. Harry is courageous, and sweet, and charming, handsome, a good friend, and he listens to me. I mean, he defeated the Dark Lord when he was a baby! Which is precisely why… "He would never like you." I whispered. He could have any girl in the school he wanted. There are loads of girls prettier, smarter, and just _better_ than me. What do I have to offer him? Nothing. Just me.

I straightened up and went off in search of an owl. Even if he won't like me back, he could still be my friend, right? Ron usually banishes Pig to the shed, so I headed in that direction, careful to avoid being in the line of sight of the windows. I shut myself in quickly and some wizard lamps automatically switched on. I glanced at Dad's muggle collection when I heard Pig's excited buzzing. I jogged over to him and attached the letter to his leg. "Give this to Harry, alright, Pig?" He simply buzzed louder. "Nip his ear for me, will you?" I chuckled before sending him out the window.

As he fluttered off, I figured Mum would be done reading the notes soon (I groaned internally), so I snuck back into my room. I heard footsteps outside the door as soon as my feet touched the ground and barely had time to shut the window before Ron walked in. He eyed me suspiciously when he saw my shoes in my hand and my feet still slightly wet, but he ignored it and reiterated "Mum says you're grounded for a week and are cut off from owls 'until further notice'. Blimey, Ginny, I don't know what you wrote, but Mum's awful flustered and is reading a muggle Bible down there. She almost started 'The Talk' about halfway through on Fred, George and me. Don't pull stuff like that again, okay, Gin? I'm gonna beat the shite outta Dean next time I see 'im."

Ron raised his eyebrows at me for emphasis before turning to leave, but I quickly stammered out "Wait, Ron! Can you ask Mum if I can send one last owl to Dean to…apologize for my…um…inexcusable…writing style?" Ron stared at me incredulously before nodding his affirmative. He left and I began planning in my head. _C'mon, Mum. Just one last letter and I can sleep peacefully tonight…_

Ron reentered the room with a quick knock. "Mum says alright, and she's 'trusting you' to be responsible with this one." He leaned against the doorframe and narrowed his eyes before asking "What are you r_eally_ going to write to Dean?"

I gave him a tired smile and said "Something I should have told him a long time ago." Ron watched me for a moment, but then left, muttering "_Girls._" under his breath.

Plopping down on my chair, I pulled out a fresh piece of parchment, sucked on a sugar quill a moment before writing:

Dear Dean,

I'm sorry to do this over a letter, but I think this issue has been bugging you too. Things just haven't been working out that well between us and this relationship was just something we turned to when we had nothing better to do. You are such a sweet, sensitive, and charming man, and I think you're wasting your time with me. We don't reach our potential with each other, and we row much more than we probably should. I'm sorry, but I think we'll both be better off this way, and I think you believe that too.

Your good friend,

Ginny Weasley

I felt pretty shallow ending it over a letter like that, but our relationship was really nothing special. Dean would probably be relieved, quite honestly. We were fading away from each other, and that's okay. We'd always be friends and have memories, but we weren't doing any good by fighting and writing meaningless love notes to each other. Dean will be okay. I'll be okay.

I gave the letter to Ron, who sent it out with Erol (still alive, miraculously). Mum came up a few minutes before my allotted bathroom time to talk about Dean. I told her how I ended it and how I felt bad about doing it through letter, but I just couldn't go through the rest of the summer feeling a step behind; like I was limiting myself. It actually kind of made me sound like a whore, but that's not what I meant, and _you _know it. She forgave me for breaking the rules and told me that if I didn't care about the relationship that much and it felt wrong, Dean probably felt the same way. It was a rare time when I actually talked to my mum alone and like actual girls instead of mother and daughter. It was nice. I was still grounded, though.

After a soothing shower and changing into my pajamas (Ron's old Chudley Canons shirt and Gryffindor sweatpants), I hopped into bed. I was about to put out the lights when I heard a soft knock on the door. "Come in," I mumbled, sitting up in bed.

It was the twins, both with sheepish yet devilish smiles on their faces. "Hey, Gin." Fred whispered, sitting on the edge of the bed.

"We just wanted to tell you…we've got your back. Even when we joke around, we love ya. Alright, Gin?" George bumped my shoulder gently. I could tell this was a tad awkward for them, but I also knew that Mum didn't set them up to this, and that made me feel loved more than anything they'd said.

I grinned a little too wide for comfort and gave them both a _real_ hug; no pinching involved. "I know. You both can be annoying gits sometimes," George tugged my hair at that. "But you're still my brothers, just the same."

After that sticky-sweet moment ended, Fred ruffled my hair and replied "See you, tomorrow, Gin." When they closed the door, I fell onto my pillow, feeling oddly satisfied. Sure, I was grounded and couldn't owl anybody for awhile, but you had to admit: I have an _awesome_ family.

I fell asleep around ten o'clock. It was a perfect, dreamless sleep and I was almost drooling when I woke up to a relentless tapping on the window. I stumbled out of the Gryffindor colored sheets (I'm a tad obsessed) to see Pig hammering away on the glass with a rolled up piece of parchment tied to his skinny leg. I hurriedly yet quietly opened the window and allowed the exhausted owl inside. After giving Pig some water and owl feed, I silently jumped into bed and stared at Harry's handwriting: "Ginny Weasley"

I smiled to myself before tearing it open, eager to hear from him. My pulse raced as I noted he had written nearly double the amount I had. Turning the light up a bit, I snuggled under the covers and finally read:

Dear Ginny,

It's so good to hear from you! I'm dreadfully bored here and haven't been able to write to you because Hedwig has got a bad wing. She'll be fine though, she's already healing up. Sorry I'm writing now, I bet Pig will get to the Burrow rather late, but I was really happy to get some mail. I've been keeping up with Hermione and she's doing well; she's camping with her parents and hopes to visit you all as soon as she gets back. All is as well as I could hope for here, but I'm dying to get back on a broom. The Captain can't be rusty! But I do agree with you concerning Ron and Hermione, they're about as clueless when it comes to relationships as I am. How're you, though? Your brothers not troubling you much, I hope? I really hope I can see you as soon you all as soon as possible. By the way, it's your O.W.L. year, isn't it? Can't say I miss those. You'll do great though; you're really smart, and a powerful witch. Don't feel obligated to write back tonight if it's too late. I hope to see you soon!

Sincerely, With Affection, Love,

Harry Potter

I read the letter four more times before placing it under my wand case and falling asleep with a smile too big for my face.


End file.
